One Door Opened
by rachgreengeller
Summary: This is based on the eighth season episode TOW the Birthing Video...in this story Rachel never watched the video with Chandler and Monica and Joey didnt declare his love...Rachel is pregnant and living with Ross.
1. Chapter 1

here is my valetines story , will update i promise... these characters are the property of BKC Productions.. this is based on the eighth season episode TOW the Birthing Video...in this story Rachel never watched the video with Chandler and Monica and Joey didnt declare his love...Rachel is pregnant and living with Ross.

"How can you talk about honesty when all you have done is lie and keep secrets from me?" Mona said with a deadly tone. She picked up the small , unwrapped red package and threw it at Ross's head. Luckily, he ducked. Storming away, she gathered up the pans she had prepared for this romanic dinner. Tearing at the red napkin rings, she threw them into the wicker basket. She then tossed in the wrinkled napkins. Lastly, she grabbed the unopened bottle of champagne. Ross sat and watched as Mona grabbed their Valentines supper. He knew this was coming.

"When did you plan on telling me about Rachel living here? When I got the invitation to your wedding." Mona said with accusing tones. "And your ex girlfriend too." she shuddered. Ross got up and began to walk toward her. He had to give it one more chance. "I told you before, Rachel is just a friend. She means nothing to me. " he said putting his hands on Mona's shoulders. Mona tore herself away from him. "That you had sex with and got pregnant!" she screamed as she gathered her coat and purse. After that, she headed for the door."I want you to crawl up your own ass and die!" she bellowed as she slammed the door on the way out. Ross stared at the closed door.

Rachel turned up the sound earlier to block out the noise and the screaming. She had been sitting contently with the Chinese on her lap and watching a movie on TV. Earlier she had been given by Phoebe a tape of her friend, Cookie giving birth to her own daughter, Cookie. The tape sat on her nightstand, she was in no hurry to watch it. This whole baby experience was scary enough. She wondered if maybe she shouldnt have come out. She knew once again , she was the cause of another relationship ending. Rachel heard Mona screaming as Ross tried to come to her defense. She also heard glass shattering and knew Mona was throwing things at him. She tried to engross herself in the movie.

Ross stood with a blank face and stared at the closed door. Two champagne glasses managed to survive the fallout. He walked over to the couch, blew through his lips and plopped down. Brushing his hands through his dark hair, he shook his head. Another woman had managed to go. Mona was the latest in a long line of women to have either left or he dumped. Something was always wrong, he wasnt in the same place, the woman wasnt ready to move ahead, then there was the complications of his relationship with his friend and ex girlfriend. Somehow Rachel was always behind everyone of his relationships in one way or another. But tonight, on this Valentine Day, he couldnt place the blame on her. This was all his fault. He had the saddest look in his hazel eyes. He would die alone. Now he knew. The only thing that would remain of him was his body and the three divorce decrees buried under a tombstone with the legend "ROSS GELLER, THREE DIVORCES." Ross moaned at that thought.

Rachel wanted to go out to the living room. She turned down the sound for a minute and heard the silence. The war was over apparently, either Ross was alone or she would see him and Mona celebrating Valentines Day by having make up sex. Her baby was pushing on her bladder and also she was hungry for some ice cream in the freezer. She threw the ancient afghan off her body, and jumped down from the bed. She quietly opened the door , so she wouldn t disturb them. Ross heard the door and got up.

"I am sorry about that." he apologized in his usual way. Rachel smiled at him. "I was only going to the bathroom and getting a snack." She looked around to see where Mona had gone. "It's over." he moaned. "She dumped me." Rachel immediately went to her friend and gave him a complacency hug. "I bet you guys will make up." Rachel coached in the hope of her best friend being happy. "Nope.' he said with certainty. Rachel felt a small tug of guilt and then she made a beeline to the bathroom.

"She said that she couldnt believe that we werent together." he said to the closed door. The words cut him to the core. He heard himself say them. Then he thought about them. He had been so damn selfish. Here it was Valentines Day and Rachel had been alone. She was in his bathroom and carrying his baby. He had carried on about how special this day was to him and Mona and it just dawned on him that Rachel had no one. He looked down at his watch. It was still early and he could make this a special day for the mother of his child.

"Rach! I have somewhere to go! I'll be back!" Ross said as he grabbed his coat. He was going to make this day special for her.


	2. Shopping for his Valentine

Attired in a tiny t shirt adorned with a large red heart, the florist girl breathed a sigh of relief. After a long afternoon of boyfriends and husbands who had to make last minute purchases, she had a reprieve. Looking down at her phone, a message brought a smile to her face. It was her boyfriend and she couldnt wait for the Valentines Day to come. A male voice brought her back to the present.

"Excuse me." Ross said in a timid voice. The girl looked at him. "May I help you?" Ross began to move around the florist as he looked at what was left this late in the day. "I am sorry sir, we had a better selection earlier." she apologized. Ross eyed the flowers. Roses? No that would be for someone who was in love and they were not that. Carnations were too plain, and that was definitely not Rachel. Daisies were too cheap looking. Then he saw the only remaining lillies left, there were only five of them. He grabbed them and explained, "They are her favorites."

"I could take some other flowers and fillers to make a nice bouquet." she offered. Ross gave her the flowers and she looked to see what was left in the store. The girl added some pink roses and carnations and some baby's breath. Then she gathered some ferns and tied them with a pink ribbon.

"I hope she likes them." He paid her and then he sailed out the door. There were more things to get.

Since Mona had taken their Valentines dinner, Ross realized that he was starving. He figured that Rachel would be as well, so he went to their favorite Italian restaurant and got some spaghetti and garlic bread. Walking down the street further, he saw a heart shaped cheesecake in the window of a bakery. On the top were two strawberries. Cheesecake just happened to be her favorite dessert. He exited carrying a large , pink shopping bag. Next he went to the newsstand to get her some candy. He debated getting her a bag of candy bars, but decided to get her a heart shaped box instead. While he was there , he picked up a British Vogue, Fit Pregnancy, and Baby magazines for Rachel.

Card shopping seemed to be the most difficult task of all. If Ross got the wrong one, he could make things worse. He looked through the stacks of cards and found one that made him laugh. It had a pink dinosaur on the front and said I DIG YOU. That would have been fine if Rachel and him were in grade school, but not now. He then saw the flowery and mushy cards. They reminded him of the only Valentine s Day that they celebrated as a couple. He would give Rachel one of these cards every day with a special surprise for the actual day. The memories brought a smile and a tear. What the hell happened to them? He continued to blame himself years later for a mistake made one night. If only he could go back and not gone to that bar . If only he could have not gotten drunk and believed there was nothing between Mark and her, then maybe they would have had a chance yet. Maybe he would be shopping for his wife, not his pregnant ex girlfriend who was living with him while he dated other women. He saw cards that used words like "Friend" or "Best friend." For some reason, those cards didnt appeal to him either. Moving down the row, he found the perfect card that talked of a special relationship. It was rather lengthy but he could picture her holding it and crying. It did seem to say everything he wanted to say to her.The best part was that it was not for romance or a buddy, it was for them . Grabbing a bear for the baby and a box of chocolates, he was on his way home. He wanted to get wine, but remembered that Rachel couldnt drink , so he got a bottle of sparkling grape juice.

"Where did you go?" Rachel asked when she realised he had finally gotten home. "Did you go after Mona?" Ross opened the bag and pulled out the bouquet. "Nope, it is Valentines Day. And since you are giving me the best gift you can give me, a baby, I want you to be my Valentine." he handed her the flowers and kissed her on the cheek. He cleared the table and then took out the carry out containers and cheesecake. "Tonight we are going to have a special dinner. Just as friends. Best friends." Rachel was so excited that she and Ross could spend some time together. She moved over to the couch as he set their table. He took the candles he was going to use for Mona and lit them for her. "This is so sweet." she cooed. Next he pored the juice into the glasses. "To my Valentine." he toasted. She gave him the sweetest smile as her glass brushed up against his. He just drank down the juice and then went back to the bag. He took out the magazines first. "This is for our baby." he said as he handed her the pink bear."I have a feeling it is going to be a girl."

"It 's so cute." Rachel said as she hugged it. "Oh candy, Ross you are going to spoil me." she said as he handed her the chocolates. "You are my valentine after all." he answered.

Next he handed her the card. She opened it and then began to read. Her eyes began to water as she looked over to see him dishing out the food onto his own plates. She was speechless. She had no idea this was how he felt. It was obvious that he had taken a lot of time to pick the card out. She took special attention to the phrase

"I am so glad to have you a part of my life."

Rachel thought back on their relationship. When she walked into that coffee shop, she never dreamed that she would see the man who would be the father of her child and her best friend. She also thought of her best friend and how she and her best friend had become the most loving couple she knew. Friendship was good and it could be the start of something really great. But she had been hurt and she said when she found out about the baby, she could do this alone. Now as the birth date approached, she began to wonder if she could. It began to dawn on her that he could be as perfect of a father to her child as he already was to Ben. As he lovingly placed the cheesecake on the plate and took the strawberry and placed it on the cut piece, she could only stare at him.

"Dinner is served, madame." he announced in a poor French accent as she laughed . Rachel rubbed her hands together and sat in front of the plates. She took her fork and speared the veal. In silence, the two of them ate and wondered what the other was thinking .

"Well, I think that someone wants to go to sleep." Rachel said as she lifted herself from the couch. Ross hurried to help her up. She walked to the bedroom holding her teddy bear . She turned to him and gave him a kiss on the cheek. "I just wanted to say Thanks. This has been a really great night and if it is any consolation, Mona lost the best man in the world." She turned the corner to the door. He stopped her and placed his hand on her belly. She opened the door and then said. "Good night." He just stood there and watched her close her bedroom door. He was beginning to feel something he hadnt felt in quite a while. He was feeling love .


	3. We Need to Talk

The next morning Rachel got up and stretched . She was still giddy with the thoughts of last night. She threw her robe around her and went to the living room. Ross was fully dressed in a striped shirt and blue tie and holding a cup of coffee. She walked over and leaned . "Whatcha reading?" she asked. Ross took his magazine and a last swig of coffee and put them on the table. He grabbed his suit jacket and headed towards the door. "I'm late." he announced . "I will get some milk and juice. See you later." Ross made a hasty retreat out the door. Rachel now had a puzzled look on her face.

After work, Rachel sat down on her usual place on the orange couch. Phoebe and Monica were there as well. Monica couldnt help describing her and Chandler's love fest as she called it. Sensing the sad look on her face, Monica decided to talk to Rachel.

"That was so insensitive of me. I mean to talk about Valentine's Day like that." Monica said sympathetically. Rachel corrected her. "Oh no, I mean it wasn't that bad."

"But I mean that Ross had Mona over and you were in your room alone."

Rachel interrupted. "Mona broke up with him last night. They had a huge fight and then he did the sweetest thing. He got me cheesecake and Italian and the cutest bear for the baby and candy and a card."

Phoebe exclaimed. "I knew it! You guys are back together!"

"Phoebs, hold on. Just because I am living with the father of my child , doesn't mean we are a couple. He was just being a nice guy. We will both date other people." Rachel stated.

"It just seems funny that she would break up with him on Valentines Day and then he would celebrate with you." Monica tried to make sense of the whole thing. "Has he made any indication that he might have feelings for you?" she inquired.

Rachel thought for a minute. "No, but the weirdest thing has happened . At first , I didnt mind Ross dating Mona, but then I began to get a little jealous of her. I don't think I have felt that way since..."

"Emily." Monica whispered. "I can't believe this ! You and my brother are getting back together." Monica leaped up and gave Rachel a huge hug. Rachel pushed her off "Whoa, there! No body said anything about us getting back together. I mean if by some chance I would feel the same way , what are the guarantees that he does."

In Joey 's apartment, the three guys sat and pondered the exact same thought. Ross, Joey and Chandler sat on the couch and sipped a beer as Ross told them about the events of the night.

"And now I am afraid that she is going to expect more from me ." he complained. "I just don' t want to make the same mistakes again." Joey looked at him and then commented. "So this means that Mona's free now?"

Chandler and Ross just shook their head at him. Same old Joey. Then Chandler directed his focus back to his friend. He put his hand on his shoulder and then asked thoughtfully. "Do you want to give it another chance?" Ross took a swig and then looked up at the ceiling. "I don't know." he said. "On one hand, it could be really great. I mean, she is having my baby and we could be a real family. I could really feel part of this whole experience. Then we could get married and have other kids. I mean I would have everything I ever wanted." Ross's eyes began to glow at the thought of him and Rachel married. Then reality set in. "But then I would do something or say something , we would fight and she would hate me and so would my child." Chandler looked at his friend. "Love is a gamble. You never know what might happen when you take a chance on love. Rachel and you could bomb, but then again, you could be as happy as I am with Monica. You will never know until you take that chance."Ross thought for a minute. "Alright, I will talk to her tonight." he sighed.

Rachel was on the sofa looking through one of her baby books when he finally got home. When she heard him, she immediately began to ignore him. She figured if he wanted to talk to her, he would. He immediately put away the groceries and then went to change from his work clothes where he could be comfortable in jeans and a sweatshirt. Rachel heard the noise from the bedroom and wondered if he was ignoring her too. When she heard the door open, she went back to her reading.

Ross stood over her with his hands on his hips. "Rach, I think we need to talk about last night.' he said. Rachel pretended to act dumb. "Last night was Valentines Day ." she stated. "And you said we were best friends. I think that you pretty much stated what our relationship is." Rachel then went back to her magazine again. Ross took it and grabbed it from her hands. "This is important damnit! I want you to tell me what you want from me! Do you just want me to be the baby's father or do you want more? I am not a mind reader!"

Rachel looked at him with a steely look. "I want you to stop yelling at me. This is not good for the baby." Ross took a minute to calm down. "Okay, I just want to know if you might possibly want to try again as a couple.I know that since you moved in here, I have been having some feelings toward you and now that Mona is gone, I was wondering if we could." he stammered.

"Could what?" Rachel said with interest. "Could talk about the possibility of getting back together again." he finally got the words all out.

Rachel looked at him thoughtfully and then she put her hand on his."I want you to know something. It may be these damn hormones talking right now but I don't care. I don't think I ever stopped loving you. I flew to London with every intention of stopping the wedding, but I couldnt because I loved you so much I wanted you to be happy. I never really wanted the divorce , I just wanted to marry you in a beautiful place and sober with no ink on our faces. When I watched our friends get married, all I could do is think how great if it could have been us." She smiled at him. "Nothing would please me more."

"Okay then." Ross started. "I think the first thing we should do is start to date again. I mean I am not going to make any promises. We can go as slow as you want or fast.'

"I agree. I mean we could go on a few dates. See how we feel then and then take it from there. " Rachel said slowly as she looked over at Ross.

The two people looked at each other and they moved closer to each other on the couch. Ross put his arm around Rachel's body and then she allowed her hands to rest around his neck. Before they knew it, the two of them were passionately kissing and Rachel let out a hum to show that she was content and happy.


	4. Our First Date

Apologies to Mondler fans, I was watching Season 8 and wanted to update this story…

Rachel paced nervously across the living room. She looked her usual gorgeous self. Her hair was pulled back with the tendrils around her face. It was the way she knew he liked it. She looked down at the growing stomach and how she felt fat in everything she wore. She was wearing a black spaghetti strap dress with diamond earrings that were a Christmas gift. She stopped to admire herself in front of the mirror. It would have to do.

Why couldn't he go in the door? It wasn't as if Ross was going out with a new girl, he knew this one well. He shouldn't have to put on airs or try to charm her. She knew every one of his moves and thoughts. He stood outside the apartment door, nervously clutching the bouquet of lilies. He should just open the door and go in, but he was too nervous. Too much was at stake. This was that second chance that he had always dreamed about.

"Hey you." He said as he opened the door. She couldn't believe he used the same greeting from when they used to date six years ago."I brought you these."

"You remembered." Rachel smiled. "They are my favorites. I'll go put them in water." Ross grabbed them from her. "No , I will get the vase and do that."Ross went to his kitchen and then put the flowers on the table.

Out of the clear blue sky, she moaned at her reflection in the mirror. "I'm fat." Ross quickly came over and gave her a thoughtful look. "No , you are not fat. You are quite possibly more beautiful than I have ever seen you." He stopped for a minute to look closely at her aqua colored eyes. Her whole face seemed to glow, even if that was an old cliché concerning pregnant women. He laid his hand on her stomach and said in a baby type voice. "Are you hungry? Are you ready now , because Mommy has always kept me waiting." Rachel gave a fake scowl and swatted him as they made their way out the door.

The restaurant really wasn't that far, so the cab ride was quick. The elderly owner of the Italian place greeted the young couple at the door. He was more than genial when he saw the young couple was obviously in love and with child.

"You have such a good memory." Rachel ranted as they entered the restaurant. "I love this place."

"I know, I thought we could have a great first date here." Ross pulled out the chair and then helped Rachel into the seat.

The owner put his hands together. "This is so great. You look so in love . How long have you and your wife been married? When is the little bambino due?"

Ross didn't know how to answer any of these questions. He didn't know where tonight would lead. Part of him wanted to correct the elderly gentleman and part wanted to let him believe they were indeed a married couple with a baby on the way. He started to think about what life would be like if he and Rachel would have stayed together.Maybe they would have beat Chandler and Monica to the altar. Maybe all of this would have happened if he never spent that night with that girl. Maybe the old man would have been right after all?

"in May." Rachel smiled to the owner. Maybe she liked the fantasy of being married as well.

"A bottle of my best, for the two of you , and a special cannoli for the little one." The owner was basking in the glow of his own vision of true love as he walked away.

"Can you believe this? He actually thinks we are married." Ross exclaimed.

"Let's not spoil his fantasy." Rachel whispered. As the owner poured, Rachel picked up the glass and clinked it with Ross'. "Are you sure there is nothing wrong with a glass of wine?" The owner realized his mistake and ran to get her some grape juice. Ross sat waiting as he the owner replaced the toasting glass with grape juice. "That is better, no? Enjoy." The owner walked away.

"To new beginnings?" Ross asked shyly.

"To new beginnings." Rachel said as she clinked her glass with his. The candle in the middle of the table reflected his dark soulful eyes as he held her hand. Suddenly a violin was playing "The Way You Look Tonight." Everything was becoming more and more clear.


End file.
